Rhyl community leaders say they are working to save the Sun Centre

COMMUNITY leaders in Rhyl have said they are working tirelessly to keep the Sun Centre open.

Labour councillors who sit on Denbighshire Council and Rhyl Town Council have said they want to see the county council take over the running of the attraction as well as the Nova Centre and the North Wales Bowls Centre, both in Prestatyn.

Denbighshire Council will withdraw all funding for Clwyd Leisure, which runs the facilities, as of April 1, and the company say they are in the verge of liquidation.

As it stands the Sun Centre may not open again while the Nova and Bowls Centre may close as of March 31, with the loss of up to 70 permanent jobs and 55 seasonal posts.

A statement from the Labour group, which is in opposition on the council, said: "The cabinet decision to remove their funding from Clwyd Leisure leaves the Labour group awaiting the out come of the negotiations that are still ongoing.

"An ideal result would be that Denbighshire Council take over the full responsibility to run the three coastal facilities.

"The Sun Centre is at risk and all Rhyl councillors are aware of their duty to the Rhyl community, we will be working tirelessly to keep the Sun Centre open for the 2014 season.

"As most of our community know there is an expectation to build a new aquatic centre on West Parade, this centre should have been started before any closure, of what is now the only tourism attraction left in Rhyl that is owned by Denbighshire Council.

"The Labour group will also be working closely with the staff of all the three attractions to make sure they will have contracts in place, and pay will be compatible to DCC workforce.

"You can rest assured the Labour Group will be working closely with county council officers to bring about a good result for the workforce and the community of Rhyl.

"The Nova is an all year round operation, that is a community facility that's used by the community and all the Prestatyn schools.

"The county council will, we believe, be keeping this valuable swimming centre open, with a much needed refurbishment to improve the premises to bring them back to the
high quality destination.

"We also believe the indoor bowling centre will be kept open as the bowling centre has the benefit of community support from the user groups that use it the centre is heavily used."